His Naughty Lessons
Chapter 142: Déjà Vu

Chapter 142: Déjà Vu

** Harper **

Harper’s lucky streak of meetings lasted throughout the afternoon. Even the panel she shared with Wallace wasn’t awkward anymore after their chat from the day before, and she giggled without pressure when HappyRoastedBeans sent her a Chapter kudos just before the presentation began.

She couldn’t have asked for a better way to top off the day when the last meeting ended with a buzz of her phone:

[ Eli: Want a break from the hotel today? ]

[ Eli: Come to the main entrance whenever you’re done. Go as high profile as you like, I’m dressed for paparazzi. ]

Ohh, yes!!! She had been waiting all day to tell him about the amazing surprise from the Future Vision demo. Where better to do it than the mysterious destination of his choosing for the evening?

As requested, Harper made no effort to hide her radiant smile as she packed up her things in a hurry. When Wallace and Naomi threw her a meaningful glance, she returned only a wink, darting out of the conference room and all but scurried toward the estate entrance.

Her high expectations were met the moment she stepped across the gate. On the plaza lined with Tiki totems, a red convertible Ferrari was parked between columns of lush palms and plumeria trees, with Eli leaning casually against its hood. And damn, he truly was dressed for paparazzi, dazzling even Harper’s eyes with ... a bright Hawaiian shirt?

She would never expect to see him wear something so chaotically colorful, with tropical leaves and white flowers blooming wildly against a flaming red background. But the sharp and vivid contrast looked shockingly flawless on him, and it made him seem ... so invitingly untamed. So deliciously hot, too.

Heck, he made such a stunning sight that no VR technology could ever simulate, and Harper couldn’t help but grin when their eyes met.

Eli returned the grin at the same time, coming forward to greet her with a firm hug. "How was your day?" He pulled back only enough to brush a light kiss over her lips.

Harper wondered if her heart would ever get used to this new norm between them and stop fluttering whenever he kissed her like this. She hid that thought with a big smile. "Couldn’t be better. I saw the Future Vision demo! Seriously, I can’t believe that’s the consulting team you found for me."

Eli laughed. And there it was, that ringing sound just like the one last night.

Harper gazed at the source of that laughter dreamingly as he took her hand, led her toward the car, and opened the passenger door for her. The sun had just started westering, its golden rays no longer blinding yet still brilliant, lighting up his features in a halo that glowed as if shining from within. When he turned back to look at her, that brilliant sunlight caught in the crystalline blue of his irises, turning them into a deep swirl of azure and cerulean more beautiful than any ocean she had seen.

She had to steady her feet to not fall over in a swoon.

Fortunately or unfortunately, Eli didn’t seem to have noticed her embarrassingly besotted state. Or at least he didn’t tease her for it if he did. "I’ve always told you that your project deserves the best." He kissed her again, this time on her forehead, before helping her into her seat. "Glad to have proven that I mean it."

He rounded the front of the car and settled in beside her.

For a moment, Harper suddenly had a feeling of déjà vu. The relaxing meetup after a long day of work, the luxurious car, the way he admired her project in such a plain and genuine way ... reminded her of that evening at the end of his visit to Miracles when he took her to the amusement park. The two images aligned in so many ways ... Except that today, he wasn’t the embodiment of professional success and elite perfection anymore. He was a honeymoon dream, and her heart swelled again as he turned that transfixing gaze onto her once more.

"No amusement parks today, by the way," he chuckled, apparently reading her thoughts. "But we do have an entire island as an alternative to explore. Ready for a mini road trip?"

Before she had the time to reply, he revved up the engine, and the car roared forward.

Harper gasped in thrill as wind buffeted her face, blowing toward them the crisp scent of summer ocean and trees and flowers. Road trip ... Of course, she should’ve expected that was his plan for the evening! It was one of their best childhood memories, nostalgic in all the best ways, not to mention the bonus of the ultimate car upgrade and the unparalleled vista of such a beautiful island. Not to mention the perfect boyfriend sitting right next to her—

Then her gasp turned into a groan as her hair started flying in the wind in a maddening disarray. "Oh God, I almost forgot how a road trip feels already," she laughed. "This hair! This ridiculous nuisance that always comes with driving!"

She reached behind her neck, trying to catch her wild locks and tame them somehow. But Eli caught her. His own hand stroked the mess of her tangled waves, tousling it with a familiar fondness.

"This ’ridiculous nuisance’ is the best part," he said. "I miss those days in your parents’ SUV, when you used to fall asleep on my shoulder all the time and cover my face with your hair in the wind. It’s the one thing I associate the most with vacations ... Who knew I’d get to relive that memory again after so many years?"

The admittance made Harper snort. "You can’t be serious. That is what you associate vacations with? Do you have some kind of thing for hair that I should know of?"

He pulled his eyes off the road just enough to look at her. His hand slipped into her lap, finding her hand there and intertwining their fingers together. "Pretty sure I have a thing for any and every part of you, Harper," he said, his eyes twinkling but his voice completely serious. "I might not have known it then ... but I do now."

And he didn’t let go of her hand for the rest of the drive.